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First Build - 6 String Bass


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I have roughly 1/4 in extra space as i was planning on adding a layer of foam...do you think an 1/8 in wood baseplate would be thick enough? i can make it 1/4 in without any foam....would there be any electronic disadvantages of using a metal plate?

off topic questions, how high should i sand the purpleheart fretboard? i have it at 320. planning on adding a coat of oil.

do i need to ground the bridge? active electronics and copper taped cavity.

as always, thanks!

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If you are using active electronics (thought you were using passive HZs?) then no need to ground the bridge, otherwise do so. As for your headstock, check the minimum thickness that your tuners can work within (1/2" or thereabouts including washer usually) since if you have spare thickness left, you could taper the headstock down from the nut to the top. Not sure how deep that cut it, but it is feasible.

You took on a hell of a job with a neck-through! I have only just read this thread and didn't realise how far into it you already were....I was going to mention how much of a pig it can be to get the neck and wings jointed perfectly to align up without too much adjusting out.

Good work!

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I decided to go with active. I got the carvin 501B module and soapbars. The gotoh tuners fit perfect, the headstock is slightly tapered by 1/8 in from nut to top. As far as attaching the wings to the neck, I first made sure the wings and neck were equal thickness. Then I used two small clamps, positioned half on the body and half on the neck. I put them perpendicular to the long body clamps, one at the cutaway and one at the bottom. If that makes any sense. That kept it from sliding at all. I also let the glue stand for about ten minutes before I attached them. No problems.

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I have to echo previous comments that this is quite an advanced level style of build for your first build- and you have done a pretty good job. It may be kind of late to mention this- I am just reading this for the first time- but it appears to me you are going to have a possible issue with strings lining up on the tuners. The hole nearest the end of the headstock is the one that might be a concern. I cant see how you will achieve a straight string pull from the nut to the tuner without hitting one of the other tuners. my apologies if this was already brought up- but you may want to consider- if possible- plugging those tuner holes and re-drilling. you will run into tuning issues- especially on bass strings- with the winds catching on the other strings- you will go to tune up and the winds may catch- and then all of a sudden you are playing and bend or snap/pop and the string releases from where its caught with a nice lound "PING". and your string goes flat.

and if it sounds like I know this from experience- well- lets just say I knew a young man many years ago who did his first bass and didnt have a plan/design on paper- and ran into that very issue - who that young man was- he will remain nameless. :blush

outside of that- great job - especially for a first build :peace

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IMAG0418_zpsf7c2ff46.jpg

waiting for the coat of oil to dry before I test the tuners...the inlay was not planned but after having to do something with the headstock after the router mistake, I decided to keep dropping the dots....once you pop, you can't stop. Ive got abalone topped control knobs for the bottom two knobs to complete the inlay.

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IMAG0421_zpsa1eb8f7c.jpg

I dont have any wiggle room with this. Before I fill and redrill, some things ive been thinking about. Shaving the posts. Stringing one string high and one string low. Creating some sort of wax/plastic/rubber 'buffer' that actually rests between the strings where they would contact, using flatwound strings. The posts are 7/16'' and I have not looked to see if I can find thinner ones yet. Although it may not be too difficult to cover a dowel piece in matching maple and a thin line of purpleheart to match the holes then redrill. I had the holes positioned right on the initial conception but deviated when I decided to flare the tuning pegs so the top pegs would angle up and the bottom pegs would angle down. Changing plans midway will have unintended consequences....who would have thought?! Let me know what you guy think. Thanks ya'll.

Edited by dsdesigns
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That would drive me nuts. Id have to move one of those tuners out a little.

Id shift the left one in the pik above by a few mm. then probobly use larger washers on all of the tuners to hide the repair from the front. Only need to hide a fook up on one, but use bigger washers on all for continuity.

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